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Operation "Atlas' Bane" closed 2 days ago with smashing success, and admitted defeats. The wreckage of EARTH Federation forces are no doubt still being cleared from the Amarr area sectors. It was a very successful contract…one that could have been even more successful if not for the counter-mercenary contract against us by EARTH.

In retrospect, it was nothing but pure symphony from a commander's point of view. While we were busy killing EARTH Federation...Maelstrom Crew (MCREW) was busy killing us. There is nothing sweeter than watching two professional mercenary organizations going about their business with the attitude that yells "business is business". To be fair, we were far outmatched by MCREW in most engagements we found ourselves in. Staying true to form, the LSD was fighting outnumbered and outgunned during most of the contract period. With MCREW entering the fray however, we were fighting a much more skilled opponent, and we sustained moderate losses as a result.

Since this is a Postmortem about the contract, I believe it was a good thing we got our butts kicked by MCREW. Over the last 6 months I had been advocating the use of "Phalanx" fleets to the LSD pilots...but it seemed as if everyone had better things to train for. A Phalanx Fleet is one that has a deep logistical component to it (in MCREW's case, heavy armor repair drones). The few close to even odds fights we engaged in clearly showed the power of such defensive cover a concentrated fleet could hold. In our last engagement we tried to break their tactical edge by getting an 8 large smartbomb Abaddon close to the primary target. Unfortunately, it was destroyed a mere 2000m from its target. As a result, we lost yet another battle.

Still...the LSD pilots are fierce warriors...even against incredible odds. We took our licks, and still dished it out to EARTH Federation for an 80% efficiency rating (average). While numbers mean nothing to our group...we also got the job done. United Earth (UEI) corporation shortly left the EARTH Federation alliance as the client wanted, and had considerable losses beforehand. While we had agreed with our client to war declare them if this situation happened, our client was satisfied with the level of destruction inflicted upon UEI. We called the contract complete, and we are still sorting the destroyed equipment we could salvage from their wreckage. It would seem that UEI is a much hated corporation as I had been contacted by pilots unrelated in the conflict with eve-mails of support.

The other noted development was the loss of a member corporation within the LSD. It had seemed my previous concerns were validated about Time Cube Syndicate (TCSYN). While I had assurances from their CEO that the contract action was fine with them, I had no idea of the internal problems that were going on inside the corporation. With a CEO that had been MIA for 2 weeks, the directors issued a mini-coup and left the alliance unannounced. A surprise for sure, but in the end Erfnam still controls the corporation...and they have a lot of rebuilding to do. While LSD itself did not cause them to leave, I am sure the contract opened their eyes to where their corporation position should be. We wish them luck in the future.

As for personal notes, the baptism by fire the OEC Blackguard received was noted. While Damnation class hulls are not overly known for their combat prowess, I threw the Blackguard into the frontlines regardless. With its crew more experienced now I have ordered the refit to a pure Fleet Command fitting complete with all 3 Armored Warfare electronics. I only lack CS 5 certification before we get the maximum benefit from such a configuration.

In the meantime, the Absolution Class OEC Vitae has entered service. My hope is that it will die a glorious death...but not before handing out mass destruction in its wake. Now...on to that CS 5 certification...